Adult Swim Yule Log

Last updated
Adult Swim Yule Log
Genre Black comedy
Surreal humor
Comedy horror
Thriller
Created by Casper Kelly
Written byCasper Kelly
Directed byCasper Kelly
Starring
  • Andrea Laing
  • Justin Miles
  • Hannah Alline
  • Sean Hankinson
  • Danielia Maximillian-Almeda
  • Skye Passmore
  • Charles Green
  • Jessica Fontaine
  • Michael Reagan
  • Tordy Clark
  • Brendan Patrick Connor
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
Production
Executive producers
Producers
CinematographyAlex Allgood
Editors
Running time91 minutes
Production companiesMedia Team
Williams Street
Fried Society
Original release
Network Adult Swim
ReleaseDecember 11, 2022 (2022-12-11)
Related

Adult Swim Yule Log (also titled The Fireplace) is a surreal black comedy horror film that originally aired as a special on Adult Swim on December 11, 2022. [1] It was created, written, and directed by Casper Kelly, and produced by Williams Street. Created in secret by Kelly, the film initially presents itself as a holiday footage video of a fireplace located inside a vacation cabin, before eventually giving way to a surprise meta-horror plot occurring within the cabin, and involving the fireplace itself. Adult Swim's first feature film and first horror film, [1] it was met with generally favorable reviews. [2]

Contents

A sequel Adult Swim Yule Log 2: Branchin' Out aired on December 6, 2024. [3]

Plot

The film begins as a static shot of a cabin fireplace with burning yule logs, accompanied by holiday music. The cabin has a dark history across the ages, including with its original occupant: an American slave owner named Isaac, who is confronted by his slave, Rosa, when he ashamedly admits that he did not sell Rosa's son William to a kind slave owner as he promised her, but to the cruel and sadistic Mr. Armfield because of pressure from Isaac's father. Devastated, Rosa screams that William was their son and stabs him repeatedly with a knife. She hides the knife in the fireplace, but is later lynched at a local hanging tree.

In the present, the owner of the cabin arrives to clean it before the weekend renters arrive, but a deranged masked killer "Pleatherface" and his mother break in and murder her. They hide her body and hide inside the cabin before renters Alex and Zoe arrive. By the fireplace, Alex proposes to Zoe, but they are interrupted by the arrival of the local sheriff and his deputy, who inform the couple of a killer on the loose. The sheriff recognizes that the log burning in the fireplace was taken from the nearby hanging tree, a taboo. Before departing, he extinguishes the log and advises them to take care and not to light it again.

Zoe and Alex argue about her apprehensions about marriage and her mental health struggles. They are interrupted again by the arrival of four renters—Ben, Beth, Holly, and Henry—who accidentally also booked the cabin and plan to investigate lynchings and alien abductions linked to the cabin for their paranormal podcast. They wait inside as Alex and Ben try to contact the owner to sort out the issue. Zoe finds the owner's phone ringing under the couch and, unnerved, she and Alex go unpack, while Ben showers, and the others go use the hot tub.

Unnoticed, the fireplace reignites on its own. The cursed yule log, now aflame, floats to the bathroom where Ben is showering and bludgeons him to death. Henry sees a small man talking to him from within the fireplace. The "Little Man in the Fire" beckons Henry to crawl into the fireplace and into a strange burning room. The man has him enter his elevator, which can travel through time and space to any fireplace in existence. He shows Henry the fireplace looking out onto his family's living room where his mother is sleeping, pregnant with him. The man tricks Henry into gruesomely killing her, thereby erasing himself from existence.

Back in the cabin, the renters (now with their friend Hunter, instead of Henry) discover Ben's corpse. Beth calls the police and is killed by the sentient log. The log cries out in Rosa's voice, as well as other anguished voices of past residents, and kills Hunter. The others hide, but are ambushed by Pleatherface and his mother. Unaware of the log, Pleatherface ties up and sexually assaults Holly and Zoe, while his mother assaults Alex in another room. She is interrupted by the arrival of an alien in a UFO, who kills her by sucking out her internal organs. It does the same to Alex, leaving him near death, and threatens Zoe before being decapitated by Pleatherface. As Pleatherface moves to assault Zoe again, the hidden knife drops out of the fireplace, and Zoe uses it to free herself and kill him.

As they escape, Zoe is also entreated by the little man in the fireplace, who offers her the chance to free herself of her anxiety-ridden life by altering history so she would never be born. She resists him, stating that she wants to live, while he admonishes her for living in a privileged era. Alex helps her break free of his influence, while Holly flees into the forest. Alex and Zoe trap the log in the cabin and flee in the car. Their escape brings them by the hanging tree, where cultists have gathered for a ritual to a dark goddess. Zoe recognizes two of the cultists as the sheriff and deputy, and runs them over, driving on until sunrise. When they finally stop, Zoe lovingly accepts Alex's proposal, but they are surprised by the appearance of the log outside their window.

The film freezes, revealed to be playing on a monitor at an Atlanta advertising agency. Isaac is a graphic designer working on a proposal for the new Armfield Cotton Mill Lofts, and his boss and partner Rosa lovingly suggests they leave work early to take their son William to a baseball game. As they talk, the office begins to burn and they begin shifting into their previous identities. Isaac begs Rosa for forgiveness for what he did to their son. Rosa attacks him. As she does, the log, now ridden by the little man, smashes through Zoe and Alex's car window, appearing to kill the both of them.

Cast

Development and production

Kelly conceived of the idea in 2021 while watching a yule log video and wondering what would occur if someone's legs appeared out of focus walking across the screen accompanied by dialogue in the background, and whether that would generate curiosity in the viewer. [4] [5] According to Kelly, he was able to pitch the initial concept to Adult Swim directly, given their working history together and was familiar with the system to get it greenlit. [6] Adult Swim also had a slush fund, which allowed Adult Swim executives to approve the project without requiring higher corporate approval. [6] The film was Adult Swim's first feature length project, and simultaneously, its first horror film. It was also Kelly's first feature-length endeavor. [7] Kelly shot the film in secret over the course of 15 days in order to ensure its delivery by the holiday season. [6] Filming took place in Atlanta and with local Atlanta actors and film crews. [8] [9] Keeping the project budget relatively low also helped the project avoid scrutiny from higher ups, according to Kelly. [6] Following the merger of Warner Bros. Animation and Adult Swim's parent company, Cartoon Network, Kelly had to deal with post-production delays and the involvement of six additional editors, following the departure of executive Walter Newman, who originally greenlit the project. [6] The entire process was compressed, taking 6 months, with each editor being given a month to work on their section. [4]

Initially, the film was to open with two hours of the fireplace yule log sequence, but a higher profile time slot caused Kelly to cut the segment down to just two minutes before the subsequent home invasion and murder sequence. [6] Post-production special effects work on the flying log were done by Brazilian company NoxusFX, which specializes in digital fire effects. [6] Filming the opening sequence, a single, unbroken 20 minute scene, was challenging. Leads Laing and Miles were only aware of the set up for the scene days before filming and rehearsed repeatedly to get it right. [10] The film's short production time also meant that Kelly was unable to experiment with the scene's set up, and would not be able to rely on cuts or close ups later in post-production. [6]

Kelly described the decision to add thematic concepts exploring American chattel slavery as a risk he wanted to take. After uncovering familial history of slave ownership, he felt he had a personal perspective to explore on the issue, including the dilemma of moral relativism. [6] Speaking on his interest in exploring questions in the sub-plot, Kelly noted his family's generational history in the South, stating, "[T]he million-dollar question is always: Well, here I am, Mister Progressive Guy in this purple state, but what if I was alive 200 years ago? What would my beliefs be? I like to think I would be a good person, but would I be? It's a scary thought. But it's an interesting, important conversation, and I took a real chance." [11]

Release

The film was produced in secret and released without advertisement on December 11, 2022, following the season six finale of popular Adult Swim show Rick and Morty . [6] [7] [12]

Reception

Adult Swim Yule Log has an approval rating of 80% on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on 5 reviews, and an average rating of 6.5/10. [13] On another aggregator, Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 67 out of 100, based on reviews from 4 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". [2]

Writing for Bloody Disgusting , Daniel Kurland praised the film, awarding it 4 out of 5 on their review scale, stating, "This stealth feature film functions as a cornucopia of horror genre tropes that plays out like an ultra-stylized Dadaist Cabin in the Woods filtered through Adult Swim sensibilities." He added, "The Fireplace is a fantastic experimental piece of cinema that, against all odds and better judgment, succeeds as a full-length horror film that's akin to Texas Chainsaw Massacre." [14]

Writing for Cinema Blend , Jason Wiese described the film as "innovative", saying that it could potentially be received as "one of best Christmas horror movies". [7] Eric Kohn of IndieWire stated that the film took "ambitious swings", praising the slavery sub-plot and gore in particular. [6] Daniel Trainor of The Messenger included the film in his list of top "Yule Log" videos. [15]

Noel Murray writing for The Los Angeles Times stated, "Kelly tries a bit too much, favoring shock and absurdity over consistency and coherence. But the attempt alone is exciting; and it offers a refreshing alternative for those who prefer their holiday entertainment to be spooky, not sentimental." [16] Similar moderately positive reviews came from IGN and Entertainment Weekly . Matt Donato of IGN wrote, "Casper Kelly psychotically spoofs the strangest of strange horror titles that turn anything into a murderous entity while unraveling deadly severe social commentaries. It's abstract art, theater camp, found footage foolishness, hunt-and-stalk depravity — Adult Swim Yule Log is a whole lot of things but, even with a full 90 minutes, few angles feel fully fleshed out." [1] Entertainment Weekly's Darren Franich gave the film a B+, stating, "In these days of TV uncertainty...there's something oddly comforting about the mindbreaking pranks perpetrated by Adult Swim...Fireplace works just as hard to upend your expectations, even if it doesn't hit Kelly's highest heights." [17]

Sequel

A sequel, Adult Swim Yule Log 2: Branchin' Out was produced in 2024 and released on December 6, 2024. Andrea Laing returns, starring as Zoe, who survived the attack and must navigate the traumatic horror movie experiences she suffered while trying to move on with her life, and finding herself inadvertently trapped within a traditional Christmas romantic comedy.

The film aired on Adult Swim on December 6, 2024, and was also available for streaming on Max on December 7, 2024. Besides Laing, the film features an all new cast, though several actors from the first film reprise their roles in brief cameos.

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The Yule Log is a television show originating in the United States, which is broadcast traditionally on Christmas Eve or Christmas morning. It originally aired from 1966 to 1989 on New York City television station WPIX, which revived the broadcast in 2001. A radio simulcast of the musical portion was broadcast by WPIX-TV's former sister station, WPIX-FM, until 1988.

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Donato, Matt (December 12, 2022). "Adult Swim Yule Log Review". Adult Swim . Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  2. 1 2 "Adult Swim Yule Log". Meta Critic . Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  3. ↑ Flook, Ray (November 23, 2024). "Adult Swim Yule Log Return Just Brightened Our Holiday Season". Adult Swim . Retrieved November 23, 2024.
  4. 1 2 Kelly, Casper (December 13, 2022). "'Too Many Cooks' Creator Casper Kelly Talks His New Adult Swim Holiday Horror - Dread Talks". Dread Central (Interview). Interviewed by Mary Beth McAndrews. YouTube . Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  5. ↑ Kelly, Casper (December 12, 2022). "Convo x Fango: ADULT SWIM YULE LOG". Fangoria (Interview). Interviewed by Angel Melanson. YouTube . Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Kohn, Eric (December 16, 2014). "How Adult Swim Made Insane Horror Movie 'Yule Log' Without Warner Bros. Discovery Finding Out". IndieWire . Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  7. 1 2 3 Wiese, Jason (December 22, 2022). "Adult Swim Yule Log: What To Know About The Special And How To Watch". Cinema Blend . Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  8. ↑ Melanson, Angel (December 12, 2022). "Convo X Fango: ADULT SWIM YULE LOG With Casper Kelly". Fangoria . Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  9. ↑ Frye, Brenden (December 13, 2022). "Casper Kelly and the Adult Swim Yule Log Subvert Mundane Holiday Traditions". CGMagazine . Retrieved December 20, 2023.
  10. ↑ Laing, Andrea; Miles, Justin (December 23, 2022). "'Adult Swim Yule Log' Actors Talk Their Chaotic New Horror Comedy - Dread Talks". Dread Central (Interview). Interviewed by Mary Beth McAndrews. YouTube . Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  11. ↑ Patches, Matt (December 12, 2022). "Too Many Cooks' Casper Kelly hid an entire horror movie in Adult Swim's Yule log". Polygon . Retrieved December 20, 2023.
  12. ↑ Kurland, Daniel (December 12, 2022). "How Casper Kelly's Experimental Yule Log Project Turned into Adult Swim's First Horror Feature [Interview]". Bloody Disgusting . Retrieved December 12, 2022.
  13. ↑ "Rotten Tomatoes". Rotten Tomatoes . Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  14. ↑ Kurland, Daniel (December 12, 2022). "Adult Swim's Surprise Horror Movie "The Fireplace" Burns Bright as a Gonzo Experimental Holiday Classic [Review]". Bloody Disgusting . Retrieved December 12, 2022.
  15. ↑ Trainor, Daniel (December 11, 2023). "Where to Stream the Best Yule Logs, From Adult Swim to Sufjan Stevens". The Messenger . Archived from the original on December 11, 2023. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  16. ↑ Murray, Noel (December 23, 2022). "Review: Nobel winner Annie Ernaux probes her past in documentary 'The Super 8 years'". The LA Times . Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  17. ↑ Greenblatt, Leah; Baldwin, Kristen; Frannich, Darren (December 16, 2022). "Brendan Fraser shines in overwrought The Whale, and a fireplace shines in Adult Swim's WTF The Fireplace". Entertainment Weekly . Retrieved December 24, 2023.
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